The Life and Times of Bella Swan
by pekkii
Summary: Awkward teen, Bella Swan has been lusting after her best friends brother for years. A few years later, after moving back to their hometown, they bump into each other. Will things be different the second time around?
1. Chapter 1

**24****th**** February, 2000**

"Alice, I really can't be bothered going out tonight. I have tonne of homework to do. You know how Mr. Werner gets when we don't submit work on time." I looked up from the essay I was currently writing to glare at her. Unlike Alice, I actually had to do work in order to continue achieving straight A's. Alice would just put something together five minutes before class and still managed to write an essay that was A+ material. If she wasn't my friend, I would probably hate her.

"Come on! You're starting to act like a nerd. All this 'staying in and studying' can't be good for you, you need a night out. Come on, just a little break." She yelled from the inside of my closet. God I wanted to hit her. I was the nerd? It took her two weeks to finish the entire Gossip Girl book series. Okay, so maybe Gossip Girl is not the best example, but you get the point. And I did just take a break. I answered the door...

"It's not technically a 'night out', if we're going back to your house to crash a party that your brother is hosting. And stop throwing my clothes around!" I got up and started picking up random articles of clothing that she threw everywhere. A scarf around the lamp, black lacy underwear that I didn't even know I had and my favourite sweatshirt. I picked it up, folded it neatly and put it on my bed.

"Stop whinging. I'm trying to put together an outfit for you with the limited amount of clothes that you have. You should be thanking me. And please come. There's going to be a whole lot of cute guys there Bells." I knew that by 'cute guys' she meant her older, cuter brother, Edward, who I've had a crush on since the 7th grade, when he was going out with some girl named Heidi. Was he single now?

"I already have a boyfriend Alice!" I yelled at her.

"So?"

"So why would I go to a party to hang out with cute boys when I have one of my own at home?" I answered smugly. I relished the fact that she was single and I had a hot senior boyfriend.

"Cause they're older!" She rolled her eyes at my inability to understand why we would _not_ want to hang out with boys older than us.

"Jake is older than us." I said, crossing my arm across my chest.

"Jake doesn't count. You are so boring!" Alice called out as she headed downstairs to the kitchen to get something to drink and/ or eat. That girl was constantly stuffing her face every time she came over. I started to think that her parents neglect to feed her whenever she's at home. So she comes to my house to scab food.

"And that's why you love me!" I called out after her. So I might be a little boring, but there was no way that I would go to a party where a group of older boys would be drinking and doing god knows what else. I was perfectly content staying in with Jake and watching a movie. Now that was my idea of fun.

I turned and looked out the window, silently praying that Jake would be here soon to save me from Alice. I loved the girl, but sometimes she could be a tad annoying.

After looking out the window for about five minutes, I realised that nothing had changed and Jake was still on his way, I began putting the rest of my clothes back in their rightful place. When I was sure that my little room was up to my obsessive standards of cleanliness, I walked downstairs to join Alice in the kitchen. I was about to ask her if she wanted to order a pizza or something, when I found her standing over the sink, attempting to open a something that looked like a bottle of...NO!

"ALICE!" She quickly turned around in surprise almost dropping the bottle.

"What?" She asked all innocently.

"Why are you trying to open one of my dad's beers?"

"Because I wanted to use the glass from the bottle to make a wind chime. Seriously Bella. I opened it because I am thirsty. Why else?"

"Yeah, but its alcohol! And we're only sixteen!" I whispered angrily, afraid that there was someone lurking in the shadows listening to our conversation.

"So? Live a little Bells." She turned back to the sink, trying to open it using a dish rag.

"My dad's a policeman. If he saw you right now..." I was cut off when my phone started ringing. I picked it up, hoping that it was not my father, but calmed down once I saw that it was only Jake.

"Hey. Are you okay? You almost here?" I almost started to panic. A thousand bad scenarios started running through my head to try to explain why he wasn't here yet. The worst being that he might have been involved in a serious car accident or something.

"Uh, yeah, about our movie night, some guy is having a party tonight and I kinda wanted to go to it...you know how I'm a senior and stuff..."

"Oh." Was he seriously blowing me off to go to Alice's brother's party?

"Yeah. Sorry babe."

"That's okay. I guess I'll just have a movie night with Alice." I said.

"Okay. Well, have a good night. I love you, you know that right?"

"Yeah. Love you too." After he hung up, I put the phone back on the table and looked at Alice, who was still standing by the sink with her hands on her hips.

"What?" I asked her. The way she was looking at me made it clear as to what her next words would be.

"He's going to Edward's party, isn't he?"

I just nodded.

"Well, unlike your boyfriend, you can count on me. I promise I will never flake out on any plans that we make." I rolled my eyes. She obviously forgot about Mark, her boyfriend from first grade. They went out for a week and were never more than two meters away from each other and were virtually inseparable. Because she was too busy with her boyfriend, I spent two weeks alone in the library until Alice came in and told me that she and Mark broke up because he had a bad case of cooties.

"I'll remember you said that when you get another boyfriend." I pointed a finger at her.

"Talking about Mark?"

"Yup. Who else. It's not like you've had any other boyfriends." I teased.

She laughed and punched me playfully in the arm. "Come on. You make the popcorn and I'll put the movie in."

She walked into the living room to put in 'How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days' or some crappy movie like that. I really didn't like chick flicks, but I could never win an argument against Alice.

I put the popcorn in the microwave and waited patiently for it to be done. When the microwave beeped with the promise of freshly mad popcorn, I pulled it out and reached for a bowl. I didn't notice Alice standing right beside me until she started talking.

"Hey you know what?"

I turned around, dropping the bowl of popcorn on the floor. "Alice, don't ever sneak up on me!"

"Yeah, yeah sorry." She said dismissively.

I crouched down and started picking up the pieces of popcorn while Alice continued speaking.

"You know what? I'm sick of watching movies at your house on Saturday nights. Let's go out and do something!"

"Something like what Alice?"

Her eyes lit up. And when that happened, she usually had a plan.

"Let's go to my brother's party!" I should have known that she would bring it up again.

"What? Alice, are you crazy?" I asked.

"No. Seriously, let's go!"

"But what happens if we get caught?" I was always envisioning the worst possible outcomes when I was about to do something I shouldn't. I was always a glass half empty kinda girl.

"Caught? It is my house too Bella. But if we do get caught, I'll just lie and tell whoever caught us that I forgot something at home."

"Because people are really going to believe that when we're all dressed up and talking to boys." Trust Alice to come up with a plan that was NOT GOING TO WORK!

"They will. My mom and dad are both out of town and it's not like Edward or any of his friends are going to notice us."

"Yeah but..." It was only then that I realised that I didn't have any other excuses as to why I shouldn't go.

"Come on. You can check on your boyfriend. Make sure no senior girls hit on him."

"He wouldn't do that. He loves me." She knew that if she mentioned Jake and other girls in the same sentence, I would get defensive.

"Fine then! You can hang out with him while I have enough fun for the both of us."

"Alice..."

"Bella please!" She looked so adorable right now, I couldn't bear to say no.

"Fine!" Like I said before, no one could win a fight against Alice. And when she wants something, she usually gets it.

"YAY!" She began jumping up and down, clapping her hands. "It's going to be so much fun! We're going to meet sooo many good looking older guys! Or I will, cause you're going to be hanging out with Jake and be all boring and..."

"Alice! Stop. Breathe. That sounds like a great plan, but I have a small problem."

"What?"She stopped jumping up and down momentarily and glared at me.

"I have nothing to wear."

"Yeah I kinda noticed. But it's a good thing I bought some of my own things over." She ran back upstairs to my room, where she also stashed all her shopping bags as soon as she arrived, and pulled out the outfit that she was planning on wearing tonight. It was a strapless light purple dress paired with strappy gold heels. When she pulled out something similar for me to wear, I said no. It looked like lingerie.

"Come on Bells. You're going to look hot!"

"No I won't! I'll look cheap. Alice, these things look good on you but not so good on me."

"Stop doing that, you're gorgeous. After I'm done with you, you will look so hot, you'll be the only girl that all the guys look at tonight. And if it doesn't work out with Jake, you have the satisfaction of knowing that other guys want you."

After spending the next five minutes convincing me to just try it on, I looked in the mirror and was surprised that it didn't look as bad as I thought it was going to be. My boobs looked bigger, which I was assured by Alice was a good thing, and I had a necklace with a pendant stopping right above my cleavage, drawing attention to it. I had subtle makeup on and my hair hung in loose curls, framing my face. Alice truly was the best.

"See. You look gorgeous."

"Thanks Alice." I turned and hugged her. I now know that she is ALWAYS right.

When we were both done, we got into her car and drove off to the party. Tonight was going to be good. I could feel it.

x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x

I must admit, for someone who was whinging about having to go to Edward's party, I was actually enjoying myself. True, I didn't drink anything but it was still fun to be able to say that I went to a party that was being hosted by a senior. And not just any senior. THE senior. Edward Cullen. When we first walked into the house, we noticed that it was decorated to resemble a club. It was all dark, with the tiniest amount of light and music blaring from the speakers. I wanted to go find somewhere more quiet to hang out and turned around to tell Alice, but she was already gone. Now I was scared. Without Alice by my side all the guys were-like Alice said they would- indeed looking my way (or at least at my chest). I wasn't used to this attention but it felt good to finally be noticed. I even had a few guys come over and start talking to me. I constantly had to remind myself that no matter how good looking each guy may look, I had a boyfriend. Whom I loved. Very, very much.

Since Alice left me on my own for at least five minutes now, I decided to walk around to a) see the rest of the party, b) try to find Alice, who was no doubt making out with some hot senior (her words not mine) and c) try to find Jake so we could at least spend a little time together. And to make sure that he wasn't with another girl. But mainly to try to spend some time together.

I walked outside to the backyard to get a little bit of breathing room and saw that it was decorated beautifully. There were fairy lights put up around the fence, tiki torches lit up by the pool and I do believe that there was fake sand scattered around. People were all standing around in their various groups either barbequing, eating, talking, drinking, and making out. Just your average high school party.

I turned around and walked back inside and decided to check out what was going on upstairs. As usual, there were people doing what 18 year olds usually do -things I've only heard about in health class and would get grounded for life for if I were to do them. I really had to go to the bathroom and since I was so used to being able to just walk in and out of rooms at Alice's house, I just walked in without knocking. What I was not expecting to find was Jake and some random girl making out.

"Jake?"He turned around at the sound of his name and was obviously surprised at the sight of me standing in the doorway.

"Bella? What are you doing here?"

"I...came with Alice." I whispered, all the while trying to hold back the tears.

He finally managed to untangle himself from whoever he was making out with and pulled me back into the hallway.

"HOW COULD YOU!" I yelled at him shoving him against the wall. Or at least trying to. Not only was he a giant, he was also huge.

"Bells. Come on. Calm down."

"NO I WILL NOT!"

"Bella. Stop yelling. Please?"

"NO!" I turned to walk away, but he just grabbed my arm and pulled me into the nearest empty bedroom. When he shut the door, I turned and started yelling at him again.

"LET GO OF ME!"

I think he was starting to get annoyed at me yelling at him, so he started yelling back.

"WILL YOU LET ME EXPLAIN?"

I cringed at the sound of him yelling at me. Jake never usually yelled at me. When he saw my reaction, he calmed down slightly. He walked up to me and put his hands on either side of my face. I really didn't want him touching me, so I took his hands off my face.

"Bells, I'm sorry." He walked over again, this time trying to hug me, but I walked backwards and into the wall.

"No you're not!" I pushed him back.

"I really didn't think that you would be here."

"Oh. So that's supposed to make the fact that you were with another girl okay? How many other girls are there that I don't know about?"

"It's not like that, I swear. Please, forgive me?" I looked up at him and saw those gorgeous brown eyes that I loved so much. I almost forgave him, until I remembered what he did.

"No!" I tuned and walked out of the room as fast as I could, hoping that Jake would not follow me. My eyes were now fast filling up with the tears that I was trying to hold back when I was yelling at Jake. They were so bad that they were starting to cloud my vision and I wasn't really paying attention to where I was going, when I bumped into someone and fell on the floor. Now things just went from bad to worse.

"Hey." Whoever I bumped into looked down and obviously saw how bad I looked, with tears running down my cheeks and my mascara probably running down with it. "You okay?" Only after they asked the question did I realise that it was a guy that I bumped into. This really was a bad night. I probably looked really bad right about now.

He held out his hand to help me up, and I took it, not trusting myself to walk in a straight line without bumping into someone else.

"I'm okay."

"You don't look okay. Come with me." The mystery man said.

He took my arm and walked me to one of the more secluded areas in the backyard. He made me sit on one of the chairs and handed me something that I assumed was a tissue and I wiped my eyes. Only then did I realise that I also managed to take some of my eye makeup off as well. I probably looked like a racoon, but he was still standing next to me.

"Thanks." I looked up at the stranger that was kind enough to help me out when I most likely looked like a mess. I then realised that it was Edward.

"No problem. You're Alice's friend right?" My heart sank. Did he really not remember me? I've hung out with Alice since we were three years old. And they lived in the same house!

"Yeah."

"Bella right?" So he did remember. Yay!

"Yup."

"And because you're Alice's friend, I presume that you're a sophomore?" Oh no. I knew that we were going to be caught. Why did I have to listen to Alice? I tried to come up with a reasonable answer as to why I was here.

"Please don't tell anyone that we were here. I just..."

"Hey, don't worry about it."

I sighed out in relief. "Thanks for being so helpful."

"No worries. I was raised a gentleman. When I see a woman cry, I always help her out." God he was really beautiful. I stopped paying attention to what he was saying after he remembered me and started staring into those gorgeous green eyes.

"Well, thanks. I'm just going to go home now." I stood up and started collecting my things when he reached out and grabbed my arm.

"Wait. Why don't you stay, we can hang out, you know, talk about what happened that upset you so badly." Wow. A man who wanted to talk. This concept was completely foreign to me.

"Oh. That's nice of you, but you are the host. I wouldn't want to keep from...whatever a host does."

This made him laugh.

"Well, lucky for you, everyone seems fairly occupied and I can spare a few minutes to hang out with you. So, what made you this upset that you walked into me?"

I glared at him. "I didn't walk into you that hard. And the reason I barged into you was because my eyes got so teary that I couldn't see where I was going."

"And what made you so teary?"

It felt really odd explaining the situation to someone other than Alice. Worse still was the fact that I was about to explain it to Alice's brother.

"I walked in on my boyfriend making out with some random girl." I sighed remembering what I witnessed only a few minutes ago.

"I'm sorry."

"It's not like you haven't done anything like that before." I looked at him with a teasing smile.

"What? Walked in on my boyfriend making out with a girl?"

"Ha-ha, so funny." I answered sarcastically.

"It sounds like you need a drink."

"Oh, I don't..." Great, now I really did sound like a little girl with no life experience.

"Okay. Then let's just sit and talk. Now, who was this horrible person that did this to you?"

"Why? Are you going to beat him up?"

He sighed. "I'll try to refrain."

I really didn't want to have this conversation, so I bought something else up instead. "Um, do you know where Alice is? I kinda want to go home."

"No, sorry I haven't. Would you like me to take you home?"

"Oh, no. Just stay here. It is your party." I said while trying to look around for Alice.

"Don't worry. Emmett will look after the house and the guests."

"Emmett?"

"My brother." I kept forgetting that there were three children in the family. I think I remember that Emmett was now in his first or second year college. We've only met once or twice before.

"Oh. Well, if you don't mind..."

"Not at all. Let me get my keys and I'll take you."

He walked back into the house, while I was left in the backyard. Funnily enough, as soon as he left, I started getting anxious about the fact that I was alone and something bad would happen. Again.

"Okay, ready?"

I guess that I was so caught up in my own little world that I didn't notice the fact that Edward came back.

"Yeah."

We silently walked to his car. And as soon as I tried to reach for the door, he beat me to it. I looked up at him and smiled.

"Thanks." Jake was a nice enough boyfriend, but after about three months of dating, he stopped opening doors for me and doing gentlemanly things. I missed them.

He walked to his side of the car and smiled back at me.

"No worries."

After about three minutes of silence, he started to talk to me. "So Bella, how did you end up coming to my party?"

"Well, I invited Alice over for a bit, just until Jake, my boyfriend, came over to watch a movie with me. When he didn't show up, cause he wanted to go to your party, Alice demanded that we crash your party."

"And did you have fun?"

"I did. That was until I saw my boyfriend making out with another girl."

"It has happened to me." I looked at him and was confused.

"What?"

"I have walked in on my girlfriend with another guy."

"Oh. I'm sorry. I had no idea." I had a sudden urge to comfort him. How dare this girl do that to him!

"Don't be. I'm over it and we're now friends."

"Oh. Well that's good then."

We spent the rest of the drive home in comfortable silence. I felt weirdly safe with him and I've only known him for about 20 minutes.

"Well, here we are."

I turned in my seat to face him. I really hoped that he would kiss me.

"Well, thanks. I guess I really needed to talk to someone other than Alice. She hates Jake, so she'd convince me to not speak to him ever again."

"Well you shouldn't. You don't need someone like that in your life."

I just nodded and smiled. I thanked him once again and walked up to my door. He was kind enough to wait in the driveway to make sure that I got in okay.

When I walked in the house, I was surprised to find my dad still sitting on the couch watching tv, beer in hand. Just a typical Friday night for my dad.

"Hey Bells. Where were you? I tried calling you for the last half hour."

"Oh. Sorry. Alice and I went to the movies and she took my phone because, according to her, I have the annoying habit talking on my phone during the movie." I then remembered that I probably looked too dressed up to go to the movies. I just hope that he didn't notice it.

"Well, next time could you call and talk to me before you leave? I was really worried."

"Sure dad. I'm, just going to go to bed now. Goodnight dad."

"Night Bells."


	2. Chapter 2

**January 22nd 2010...**

"Marcus, Anthony, come down now! Dad's here!" I yelled from the kitchen, hoping that the boys would hear me over the noise of their new remote controlled cars that I bought them a few days ago. They were so attached to the cars that they slept with them.

I looked back at Jacob.

"They'll be here soon."

"Okay." He said, looking everywhere but me. The floor must have been mighty interesting...

Ever since Jacob and I got divorced, things have been a little weird between us. We were both trying to be as nice as possible to each other in front of the boys, but, truth be told, it was really hard.

"So, I got the divorce papers today. I'll fill them out and then give them to you." While he was talking to me, he started rearranging various little things on the kitchen table. I really wished that he would stop doing that.

"Okay."

"I really am sorry for the way things turned out for us." Yeah. I'm sure he was. We sat in silence for about a minute. This was becoming uncomfortable.

"Marcus, Anthony! Down, Now!" I hoped that the boys would come down and save me from having to be in the same room as Jake.

The boys ran down the stairs into Jake's waiting arms.

"Hey, how are my two favourite boys?" He asked, kissing each of them on the forehead.

"We were playing with our new trucks that momma got us!" Marcus explained happily.

"Is mom spoiling you two again?" He looked up at me. I just rolled my eyes. They deserved to be spoiled when their dad was never home.

"Yes!"

"Where are your bags?" I asked them. They always either chose to ignore or always forgot to do what I asked them to do. But then again, I doubt that two four year olds remembered anything.

"Upstairs!" They answered in unison.

"I'll go get them." Jake offered.

"Sure."

When he was gone, I turned to the boys.

"You two better be good for dad alright?" Not that I really cared. But I wanted to be the mature one.

"Okay." They answered in unison.

"Where are you going mommy?" Marcus asked me. He was so damn adorable, that it was going to be hard for me to leave for a few weeks.

"I'm going to stay with grandpa for a while, okay?"

"You are?" I turned around and saw Jake standing there.

"Yeah. I need to get out of here for a while. And I haven't seen dad in a while."

"Okay. Say hi to Charlie."

"Not too sure that he'll be happy to hear from you, but I'll pass it on."

I turned back to the boys and leaned down and kissed them goodbye.

"So I'll see you soon?" Jake asked. Like he honestly cared where I was or what I was doing.

"Yeah."

"When will you be back?" He chooses this time to be caring and attentive. He could do this when we were together and happy.

"I'll be sure to call you when I get back. You can go now."

He simply scoffed and went to help the boys into the car.

I walked back into the house. I thought that having the entire house to myself would be a good thing, but I was just bored and it just seemed really large and empty without the boys. I decided that I would leave for Forks now, or in the morning. I called Charlie to tell him the good news.

"That's great! When do you land? I'll come and pick you up." He sounded do happy. I was glad I was going to see him.

"I haven't even bought the tickets yet. I'll call you later to tell you when I get in."

"Are the boys coming?"

"Um, no." I had a feeling he would ask.

"So who's looking after them?"

"I left them with Jake."

"Bella..."

"Dad, don't worry."

"Are you sure you want to leave them with him?"

"Well, he is their father."

I heard him sigh down the phone. "Okay. Well I have to go. I'll see you soon. Love you Bells."

"Love you too dad."

After hanging up, I made myself some food and logged on to my computer to book a flight back home. I was really glad I had the opportunity visit my dad again, and I really needed this break.

Once everything was settled, I began to pack. I started packing with the mentality that I would only the necessities. Two hours later, there were three bags waiting by the door. So much for only packing the necessities. I was just about to crawl into bed, when the phone started ringing. I picked it up and the caller ID informed me that it was Jake calling. I immediately started to panic, picturing all of the bad things that could possibly happen to the boys.

"Hello? Is everything okay? Are the boys hurt? Are they okay?" I asked, all in one breath.

"Hi momma!" I sighed in relief. It was just Anthony.

"Hi sweetie. Are you having fun with dad?"

"YES! He let us eat chocolate cookies!" Cookies? AT TEN AT NIGHT?

"Did he now? Do you mind putting him on the phone darling?" I tried to remain calm. It's not his fault. He doesn't know any better.

"Okay." He pulled away from the receiver and yelled out to Jake.

"Hello?"

"Why are you feeding the boys chocolate cookies at ten at night? Not only is it past their bedtime, they also get really bad stomach aches if they eat chocolate this late at night! You should know this!"

"Jeez Bella, calm down. I let them eat cookies because it's something their mother never lets them eat and I thought that they deserved a treat."

"What, so now I'm a horrible mother because I deprive my children of chocolate cookies?"

"I NEVER SAID THAT!"

I took a deep breath in to try to calm myself down. This is one of the reasons we are getting divorced. We were constantly yelling at each other.

"Don't worry about it. But I would at least appreciate it if you would stop feeding the boys chocolate after three in the afternoon."

"FINE!" And then he just abruptly hung up the phone. I would never again leave the boys in his care after our divorce was finalised.

x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

I woke early the next day to board the plane on time, which happened to be six in the morning. I woke at two to finalise everything, grab my passport and make sure that the house was left in its pristine condition before I left. God forbid anyone break into the house and find it in a state of disarray. When everything was perfect, I gathered my things and headed to the airport.

A short while later, I finally landed in Forks. The weather was just as I remembered it. Horrible, cold and dreary. Everything was green and brown, but instead of it driving me crazy as it always had, it was oddly reassuring.

As promised, my dad was there waiting for me at the arrival terminal. It was cute how he was so concerned about me.

I walked up to him and ran into his arms. God did I miss him.

"Hey Bells. How are you? How was the flight?"

"Good, good. I'm fine. The flight was horrible, but what can you do?"

"Good to have you home Bells. I've missed you."

We continued talking while he picked up my luggage and walked me to his car. It was, as I guessed it would be, his police cruiser.

I fell asleep on the way home, considering it was early in the morning and I didn't sleep at all on the plane.

"Bells, we're home." Dad said, gently shaking me awake.

He obviously realised just how jet lagged I truly was as he took all my bags upstairs and into my old room. It looked exactly the same as it did when I was still in high school. As soon as I set foot into the room, I threw myself on the bed and fell asleep within the next five minutes.

x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

When I woke up the next day, I wondered into the kitchen and found it empty. I walked around the small but cosy house and realised that Charlie wasn't home. I went back into the kitchen and found a note attached to the fridge. "Gone Fishing." I smiled. Nothing had changed at all.

I opened the cupboard hoping to find some sort of cereal. The cupboards were empty. I opened the fridge in hopes of finding eggs, bacon and orange juice. I couldn't find any of those items. I repeat: nothing had changed.

I felt bad knowing that Charlie survived on take out and decided to go to the grocery store to buy some supplies so that I could at least make him food while I was here.

I reached for the coffee pot, which was (thankfully) full, and poured myself a cup. I then walked back up to my room to shower, change and go groceries shopping. I walked outside into the freezing cold and walked to the car Charlie demanded I let him hire for me. I was glad that I had the option of an actual car over his police cruiser.

Just like everything in Forks, the grocery store was five minutes away from the house and I was surprised that I remembered where it was. It was just as I remembered it. It seemed that nothing in the small town of Forks had changed since I moved to New York.

Walking down the aisle, I picked up everything I needed to make lasagne. As I was checking the ingredients off my list, I wasn't looking where I was going and bumped my trolley into someone else's.

"Sorry about that." That voice. Why did it sound so familiar to me? I looked up and it was none other than Edward Cullen. And he still looked as gorgeous as he did ten years ago.

"Edward?"

"Um, have we met before?" He asked, looking at me like I was some crazy random. Which, considering he didn't remember me, was what was most likely thought I was.

"Yeah. Um, I went to one of your parties during your senior year?" Stupid! Like he'd remember me from that lousy titbit of information.

"Um..."

"I was your sister's friend?" Great! If he remembered me, I now made it sound like I was Alice's only friend.

"Oh! Yeah. Now I remember. Bella Swan, how are you?" He broke out in a smile. God he was beautiful.

I was doing a dance in my head over the fact that he remembered me. Yay!"Good, good. And how are you?"

"Great! And I can I just say that you still look as gorgeous as you did ten years ago."

"Thanks." I was hoping that I wasn't blushing. That would be embarrassing.

"It's been years. I'm sure that we have a lot to catch up on. Did you want to go out for a coffee? Hang out for a while?"

I looked at my watch, calculating if I had enough time to get a coffee and have enough time to cook dinner for Charlie. It looks like I did. "Sure. Um, let me just finish my shopping and take it home. Do you know any good cafes around here? Or if there are any actual cafes in Forks?"

He laughed. So I was funny in Forks. "Sure. Would it be too weird if I followed you back to your place and then led the way to the cafe? Since it's been a while, I wouldn't want you to get lost, and you do have all that shopping."

I shook my head. "No. Not too weird."

We walked to the checkout together and being the gentleman that I remembered he was, let me go first. Once all the groceries were payed for, he helped me carry the items to my car.

"You didn't have to do all that."

"It seemed like the gentlemanly thing to do."

"Well then thank you."

He ran back to get his groceries and then followed me home. As I was driving, my mind started thinking up possible outfits, other than the ratty sweats I was currently wearing) for our coffee date. I decided to go casual, which meant jeans, a pair of boots (to keep my feet and legs warm in this horrible Forks weather) and a warm sweater. I know that I was probably making a bigger deal of this than I should, but I really did like Edward. And who knows, with my divorce becoming final the next few weeks, anything could happen...

x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

"So you moved to New York huh?" He looked surprised.

"Yeah. I just really wanted to get out of Forks after graduation."

"How does it feel living there?" He asked, taking a sip of his coffee, which was really good by the way, for coffee in Forks. I was still addicted to Starbucks.

"It's crazy! Crazier still, I have two little twin boys!" Know why did I have to say that?

"Wow! I can only image how beautiful they look. Just like their mother." He hadn't changed at all. He was still the guy who could charm the pants off women. Which was where I was hoping that this was going...

"Well, I'm sure that they have a little bit of their father in them too." I really hated to bring up Jake, but the kids did have his colouring.

He leaned in closer to me and I swear that his face was even more beautiful up close.

"So then tell me Bella, why did you leave your perfect life in New York to come back to Forks?"

"I'm just here to visit my father. I haven't seen him since I got married."

"And you were wondering around Forks alone?"

"Not alone now, am I?" I knew that I was most likely flirting with him, but there was nothing wrong with that right? I mean, I was getting divorced.

"No. You're just lucky that I'm here to protect you from all the evil lurking around Forks." I smiled. He was flirting back. "So tell me. Who was the lucky guy that managed to steal your heart?"

That was when my smile disappeared.

"Um, Jacob Black." I muttered, hoping that he didn't hear me.

"Jacob Black? Why does that name sound so familiar?"

"Um, because he was the guy that made me cry because he was making out with some random girl at your party."

He quirked an eyebrow. "So you married him?"

"Well..." I trailed off.

"And after I beat him up for it?"

"YOU BEAT HIM UP!"

"Jeez, say that again Bella. The table down there couldn't hear you."

"Why would you do that?"

He held his hands up on defence. "Because he hurt you. And I didn't exactly beat him up. In my defence, he hit me first."

"Tell me exactly what happened."

He sighed. "Well, once I came back from dropping you off, I walked up to him and found him making out with another girl and pulled him off her. I told him that he just lost the best thing that ever happened to him and to never talk to you again, or I would hurt him. He told me to mind my own business and went back to making out with the same girl. I pulled him off her, because I wasn't finished talking to him, and he punched me in the face. So, of course, being a teenage boy, I hit him back. It took both Emmett and Jasper to pull us apart and I kicked him out of my house."

"Well, two weeks after the party we made up. I really thought that he had changed. I guess, ten years later, he was still the same guy. I should have known."

"And you're still married to him?"

"No. We're getting a divorce. It didn't work out."

"I'm sorry to hear that." He reached over and put his hand on mine. It was on oddly comforting gesture.

"It's okay."

"So, on a lighter note, what are you doing tonight?"

"I was going to unpack and make Charlie dinner. Why?" God, I sounded boring.

"When was the last time you went mini golfing?"

I laughed. And was he really asking me out on a date? "It's been a while."

"Good. Be ready by 8.30. I'm taking you out."

"Are you sure? I mean, don't you have a girlfriend or wife?" I was secretly hoping that he would say no.

"Um, I had a girlfriend, but um, things didn't work..."

"Oh, I'm sorry."

"Don't worry about it. Anyway, back to minigolf..."

x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x

I was standing in the kitchen putting the final touches to the lasagne Charlie and I were going to eat for dinner when there was a knock at the door. I knew it wasn't Charlie, (he had keys, obviously) but was secretly hoping that it was Edward. But it was only 6.30 and I still had two hours left until we were supposed to go mini golfing.

I walked up the door and looked through the peephole. What I saw (or to be more succinct, who I saw) shocked me. He followed me back to Forks?

I opened the door.

"What are you doing here Jake?" I was really tempted to shut the door in his face.

"I wanted to come down and talk to you."

"And you couldn't wait until I got back to New York?"

"It's important."

"What is it? Is it the boys? And where are they?" I looked behind him, hoping the boys would jump out of the car any second.

"Relax Bella. The boys are with a babysitter."

"WHY WOULD YOU LEAVE THEM WITH A BABYSITTER?" I smacked his arm.

"Because I needed to talk to you."

"Well, I don't want to talk to you. So go back to New York and look after our boys. And after we get divorced, I am never leaving them with you ever again!"

I slammed the door in his face. I was just hoping that Charlie would get home soon and make Jake go back.

Fifteen minutes later, I looked out the window and saw that Jake was still there, sitting on the hood of his car. Lucky for me, my dad just got home. And by the looks of it, he was pretty much telling him to go home. I guess that Jake must have mentioned that the kids were being looked after by a babysitter as Charlie was really angry with him. I couldn't hear what Charlie was saying to him, but I guess he managed to get his message across, as Jake got back in the car and started driving away. Good.

"Hey Bells."

"Hey dad. How was work?"

"Screw work. What was Jake doing here?"

"He said that he needed to talk to me about something important."

"Which was?"

"I shut the door in his face once I found out the boys were with a babysitter and that they were okay."

"I smell food." I smiled at my dad's attempt to change the subject.

"Yup. Lasagne I remembered that it was once of your favourite dishes."

"Thanks Bells." He walked up to me, kissed me on the cheek and went upstairs to clean up before dinner.

I sat down at the table and began to eat. Just as I was finishing off my food, Charlie came downstairs.

"Wow. You eat fast. You in a rush?" He sat down and began shovelling food into his mouth. Good to know that his manners haven't changed.

"I was just hungry. And I'm not in a rush. I just have someone coming to pick me up soon."

"And who might that be?"

"Edward Cullen." He stopped mid chew and stared at me.

"Edward Cullen? Isn't he a little old for you?" He waved his fork in front of my face. I rolled my eyes at his stupid question.

"He's only two years older than me dad."

"That's still too old for you."

"Dad! Jake was two years older than me."

"And see how well that turned out. I really care for you and don't want to see you get hurt. Anyway, where are you two going?"

"We're going to play a round of mini golf."

"Mini golf? Aren't you two a little old for mini golf?" He scoffed.

"Well, I mentioned that I haven't done it in a while and he was nice enough to offer to take me. And no, you're never too old to play minigolf."

"And when did you have the chance to talk to him?"

"We met at the grocery store and he invited me out for coffee. And an interrogation isn't really necessary. I'm old enough to be able to go mini golfing if I want." I then realised that I sounded like a little child.

"I know you're old enough. It's just...are you sure that you want to start dating again after what happened with Jake?"

"It's not a date dad! We're just hanging out. And it's not like I'm going to marry the guy!"

"Okay, okay!"

There was a knock at the door.

"That's him. Did you want me to invite him in?"

"No. I trust him. You two just have fun. And be safe!" He called out when I opened the door. When I opened the door, there he was looking really good.

"Hi Edward." He pulled me in for a hug.

"Hey Bella. Ready to go"

"Sure." I took my coat off the coat rack (yes, my dad still had one)."Bye dad!"

"Bye Bells!" Dad yelled out a 'bye' back.

We walked to Edward's car and, as usual, he opened the door for me.

"Thanks."

He walked over to his side and started the engine.

"Ready for some mini golf?"

"Yeah. By the way, I may not have play for years, but I can still beat you." For Alice's thirteenth birthday we went mini golfing, and she started crying because I beat her, and because it was her birthday, she was supposed to be the best. I ended up switching our score cards just to shut her up. And also to be a good friend.

"Is that so?"

"Yup." I answered smugly.

"Then why don't we place a wager on this game of mini golf?"

"Okay. That should make things more interesting."

"The loser has to take the winner out to dinner at their choice of restaurant after the game and also has to pay for it."

"Okay then. Hope you like Italian Edward.."


	3. Chapter 3

"You cheated!" Edward whined when we got into the car.

"No I didn't! I told you I was good!" So it was a lie. I wasn't very good, but Edward was worse. But at least I got a free dinner out of cheating.

"Don't lie Isabella! I saw you cheat." Damn. My cheating was supposed to me inconspicuous.

"And when was that?"

"When I went to go pick up my ball!" I didn't cheat then. I was too busy staring at Edward's very fine ass.

I rolled by eyes. "You're just a sore loser Edward."

"Okay. So since you won, where are we going to dinner?"

I tapped my chin, pretending to be in deep thought over a restaurant."Hmm, I feel like going somewhere expensive..."

"And I feel like going down to the diner." He sulked.

"Hey! I won, so therefore, I choose where to eat." I punched his arm playfully.

"Bella, you know that there are no expensive restaurants in Forks. But we do have plenty of diners."

"Fine! Take me to the stupid diner." I crossed my arms and glared at him. Meanwhile, he was grinning. How did he always mange to get his way?

"You'll love it there. It's all burgers and fries and cobblers." While that did sound appetising, he could have suggested a more romantic place, maybe in Port Angeles. It's not like I had a curfew, he could take me out of Forks.

I glared at him "I hate you."

"No you don't."

"Fine. But you did lose, so you have to buy me dinner. It's only fair."

We ended up eating at the diner that all the 'cool' people went to went to during high school. They still had the same menu even after ten years. We even sat at the table that Edward and his friends frequented during lunch breaks. Funnily enough, I remember sitting in the corner of the diner, surreptitiously peeking over my menu to catch a glimpse of him. Good times...

"Wow. It hasn't changed a bit."

"Yeah. I really love it here. It brings back a lot of memories. So, what did you want to get?" He asked once the waitress walked up to our table.

"Oh. I'll get the chicken burger with a side of fries and salad and a coke please."

"I'll get the same. Thanks." He handed the menus back to the waitress and turned back to me.

"So, tell me a little about yourself. I've told you my life story, now you tell me yours." I said, smiling at him.

"Well, what do you want to know?"

"Do you still live here?" I asked, taking a sip of the coke that was put in front of me.

"No. I live in Chicago. I came down here for a few weeks to visit my parents."

I smiled when he mentioned their names. Esme was like a mother to me. Every time I time I went over to see Alice after school, Esme always had pink lemonade and chocolate chip cookies waiting for us when we walked into the kitchen looking for something to eat. "Carlisle and Esme? How are they?"

" They're good. Glad I came back for a bit. Esme always tells me that I never visit them often enough. She started making me feel bad."

I laughed. "That's Esme for you."

"Did you want to go visit them? I'm sure they'll love to see you." Was this considered meeting the parents? But I already knew them, and me showing up at the house wouldn't raise suspicion that something was going on between us. Like I said, she treated me like her daughter.

"How about after dinner? Now, back to you. What do you do up in Chicago?"

"I run an architectural firm." Wow. Good for him. Sexy and had his own business. As for me, after I received my diploma, I couldn't get a job because I was pregnant with the twins. I turned into my worst nightmare. A housewife.

"And how does someone who has their own business have no women in their life?"

He sighed and looked like he was sick of repeating the same story about how thing didn't work out for him with the mysterious woman. "Like I said before, I did, but things didn't turn out."

"I'm sorry." Great! I ruined the mood.

"Change of subject. When can we do this again?" He was smiling again.

"Well, how about we do this before I leave." I suggested.

"Sure."

"Just call me. I'm here for another week. Here's my number..." Wait a minute. Did I look desperate giving him my number after only one semi-date? I guess he didn't think so as he gave me his phone to put my number in.

"And I guess that it would only be fair that I give you mine now." He took my phone and put his number into my phone.

"Well now that that's sorted, do you feel like dessert?"

I looked at my phone to check the time and decided that I should probably head home. Knowing Charlie, he was most likely staring out the window to check what time I get home. "Not really. I think that I should probably go home now."

"Why? Is it past your bedtime?"

"Yes. My dad told me to come home before 9. It's 10.30."

"Well then, we'll have to get you home now."

x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x

I walked into the house and saw that my dad was asleep on the couch. The tv was still on and he was watching a football game before he fell asleep. I tried not to wake him up. Partly because I knew he worked late tonight and because I really didn't feel like answering questions about my date. But, as soon as I stood on the one creaky stair, it woke him up.

"Bells, is that you?"

"Yeah dad."

"Come here." I sighed and walked back into the living room.

"What is it?"

"How was the date?"

"It was good. He invited me to visit Carlisle and Esme later this week."

"Meeting the parents eh?"

"Dad! We're not dating! We're just hanging out. And I've known Carlisle and Esme for years. I was friends with Alice for ages. And they were her parents too."

"Call it whatever you like. He likes you."

"Goodnight dad!" I said, walking away from this conversation. It was too weird talking about it with my dad.

I was just coming out of the shower, when my phone started ringing. I saw that it was Jacob and I really didn't fell like dealing with him now, but I really wanted to talk to the boys.

"Hello?"

"Hi momma!" Both the boys answered at the same time.

"Hello boys! How are you?"

"Good!"

"Has dad given you any more chocolate cookies?"

"No. And we really wanted some."

"You shouldn't be eating any anyway. You boys don't need chocolate."

"We do so!" I could practically hear them sticking their tongues out at me. I also knew that if I continued convincing the boys that they didn't need chocolate, they would just come up with reasons why they did need chocolate.

"So, are you guys having fun?

"Yes! Dad took up to the park and we played with the Frisbee."

"You did. Wow! That does sound like fun."

"When are you coming home momma?"

My mind wandered back to Edward and his invitation to visit his parents again. I really wanted to stay in Forks for as long as Edward was here so we could hang out some more.

"Soon baby. I promise."

I heard one of the boys whispering to someone in the background, before they continued to talk to me. "Daddy wants to talk to you."

"Well, can you tell dad that I'm busy and that I'll call him soon okay? Hey listen, I have to go okay. I'll call you again soon okay?" I really didn't want to talk to him right now. I wanted to preserve my current state of happiness.

"Okay. See you soon. We love you momma."

After hanging up on the boys, I got dressed. Just as I was pulling back the covers, my phone started ringing again. I looked at it and saw that it was Alice calling.

"Alice! Hey! How are you?"

"Why did you not tell me that you were in Forks? Why did I have to hear this information from my brother?" No hello, just right into the main reason of her call.

"Jeez. Good to hear your voice again too Alice."

"And what are you doing hanging out with my brother? What happened to you and Jake? Why haven't you talked to me recently?"

"Are you going to let me speak?" I interrupted her.

"Yes. Sorry."

"Okay. I didn't tell you that I was in Forks because I've only been here for two days and have been really busy. You heard this information from your brother because he had the time to tell you. I'm hanging out with your brother because we wanted to catch up after not seeing each other for ten years. And as for Jake, I think I may have mentioned that I am getting a divorce."

The line went quite for a few seconds, while I was waiting for her to digest this new information. This was all new to Alice because the last time I talked to her was to tell her that I had twins. And that was well over two years ago. I sucked with keeping in touch with old friends. "Oh, Bells. I'm sorry."

"It's okay. It just didn't work out."

"I told you! I told you that he wasn't a good guy! What happened?"

"He cheated! With his secretary! How cliché is that?"

"Oh, I'm sorry babe. But you know what they say. Once a cheater, always a cheater."

"Who says that?"

"Me." I smiled. I knew that I could trust Alice to lighten the mood while talking about divorce. "Well girlie, I'm coming back to Forks for a while. I have some huge news to share with the family and with you."

"I'm leaving soon. When are you coming down?"

"I'm at the airport now. We leave in two hours."

"Wow. That was really quick."

"Yeah. Jasper and I just couldn't wait!"

"Jasper is coming too?"

"Yeah. Hey, do you mind coming to the airport to pick us up? I wouldn't ask, it's just that Carlisle is at work, Esme's car is getting fixed and Edward is busy doing work or something. You don't mind do you?"

"Carlisle is at work this late at night? And where does Edward have to be this late at night?" I asked her.

"Bella, he always works night shifts. As for Edward, the hell if I know. And why are you so worried? Are you in lurve with him?" She then made kissing noised down the phone.

"No I'm not in love with him Alice, I'm not even single yet. As for picking you up, I don't mind at all. When do you land?" I changed to topic, hoping that we could avoid talking about Edward. It was weird talking to her when he was her brother.

She gave me all the details and I promised that I would pick them up. So I guess that that meant about three hours of sleep. I set my alarm to wake me up. I put my head on the pillow and just as I was falling asleep, my phone rang once again. I was really frustrated at this point and answered the phone by yelling at the person calling me at this hour.

"What?"

"Well hello to you too Bella."

I sat up in bed surprised. "Edward?"

"Yes it is me. I guess you heard that my sister is coming back."

"Yeah."

"She also mentioned that she asked you to pick her up, so I thought that I would come with you. You take your car and drive them back to the house, I'll take mine and put their luggage in it. You know how Alice always over packs."

I giggled."Yeah. I sure do."

"Okay. So how about we meet at the airport a little bit before they come in so that we can get a coffee?"

"Sure. Don't see why not."

"Okay. So I'll see you soon?"

"Yup. Night Edward."

"Night Bella."

I was falling asleep when my alarm went off. I opened one eye and glared at it.

x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x

I was really annoyed at the fact that I had to wake up super early and glared at those annoyingly chipper people who were laughing while sipping their cappuccinos at five in the morning. Edward was one of those people. Needless to say, he annoyed me. I walked up to him, glad to be spending more time with him, when I stopped in my tracks. There were the two other people sitting with him. I walked up to the group, hoping that, as soon as I walked up to the table, they would leave Edward and me alone. I walked up behind him and tapped him on the shoulder.

"Hi there."

"Bella! Hi!" I looked at the people sitting at the table with him, waiting for Edward to introduce me to them, but he just stood there.

"Hi. I'm Bella." I stuck my hand out towards the blonde with the great hair and big boobs waiting for her to introduce herself. She just looked at my hand as if it were infected.

"Hi. I'm Rose." She looked at me once and then turned back to Emmett. I put my hand down. Ohhhhkaaay. Who was she?

"Bella! Oh my god, it's so good to see you again!" The guy sitting next to her got up and gave me a hug so big, I believe that it cut off my circulation.

"Oh my god, Emmett! How are you! I haven't seen you in ages!"

"I'm good. We just got engaged."

"Oh. Who's we?"

"Me and Rosie."

"Well congrats." Me and Emmett talked nonstop for the next fifteen minutes about things that have happened since the last time we saw each other. I guess Rose was getting annoyed because he found someone who he could have an intellectual conversation with as the next thing I knew, she was making him walk her to the toilet.

"Well that looks like it going be a fantastic marriage." I snorted.

"I said the same thing to Emmett. He says that I have to get to know her. But I really don't want to."

"I know. It looks like she has a constant stick up her ass."

He laughed. He found me funny! No one found me funny! Sarcastic, yes. Cynical at times, yes. But never funny. Now I really like him.

"Do you want to go grab a coffee when Rose and Emmett get back?"

"Sure. And a magazine. In case you guys leave me alone with Rose, I have something to do."

"Speak of the devil..."

I turned around and saw Emmett and Rosalie walking back to our table.

"Okay guys, Bella and I are going to get coffee. Do you want anything while we're up?"

Emmett said he didn't want anything, but Rose requested the latest issue of French Vogue. We walked over to Starbucks and placed our orders. While we were waiting, I went to the nearest newsagency and bought Rose's magazine. Because, god forbid, we forget it. I walked back to Edward and saw that he was carrying two tall cups of coffee. He handed me my coffee and a cupcake he bought just for me. It was frosted with pink icing. I must say that it was a pretty cute gesture.

When we walked back to the table, we saw Emmet and Rose making out. The airport really wasn't that crowded, but making out in an airport? Seriously?

Edward coughed to get their attention and they pulled apart from one another. I walked up to Rose and handed her the French Vogue. She didn't say thanks. She just took it and started flicking through it. After I sat down, Edward moved his chair closer to me and whispered in my ear telling me that Rose was always like this. She grew up in a privileged household and was used to getting what she wanted. Still didn't excuse anything.

I was so bored just sitting there with Rose and Emmett, so I walked up to the arrivals board. It turned out that Alice and Jasper were landing in less than an hour.

"What are you doing here all alone?"

"I was getting sick of Rose being all...Rose like. So I came here. Alice and Jasper are landing soon."

"So I see. Bella?"

"Yeah?" I said, taking a sip of my coffee.

"When are you going back to New York?"

"In about three weeks. When do you leave for Chicago?"

"Around the same time."

I tried not to let the fact that we were probably never going to see each other again affect me.

I knew that we would eventually have to leave Forks. I just wished that it didn't have to happen so soon. "Well, I had fun hanging out with you."

"That's it?"

"What's it?" I turned around to look at him.

"We had fun for a few weeks and were never going to see one another again?" He looked...angry?

"We do live in different cities. How is it going to work?"

"We'll find a way." He walked closer to me until we were nose to nose.

"Edward..." I sighed.

"HI GUYS!" Before I had a chance to turn around, Alice was already hugging me. And she also ruined mine and Edward's moment.

"Alice! What are you doing here? You were supposed to be an hour away."

"We borrowed on of Jasper's friend's private plane. How are you?" Private plane? Just how rich was Jasper?

"Good. What about you? Living in L.A, doing fashion. How is it?"

She didn't even answer the question. "You know what we should do? We should go out to lunch. All of us. To catch up."

Edward walked over to me and Alice. "Lunch sounds good. Bella's going to take you home and I'm taking your entire luggage in my car." He said, kissing her cheek.

"Thanks Eddie."

"It's Edward. And let me guess, you have two dozen bags waiting to be loaded into my car right?"

"You know me too well. So Bella..." She turned to me and walked with me to my car, leaving Edward and Jasper to load the luggage. "What's going on with you and my brother? And don't say that nothing is going on or I will have to hit you."

"I don't know. We're just hanging out."

"Hanging out? Come on Bella! This isn't high school! You have to give me more than that. Unless...you two haven't?" she made a motion with her hands that I was trying to figure out.

"Haven't wh...ALICE! Of course we haven't!"

"Okay okay. Just asking."

"Jeez. You're his sister. Do you really want to know these things? I mean, I know you guys are close..."

"Hey! I tell you things. Like remember that time that Jas and I went on vacationto that little beach house, where we..."

"Okay!" I held my hands up. "Too much information. I love you, but I don't need to know every detail of you sex life."

"But that's what friends are for! There are no friendly girls in L.A. My closest friend is another designer, who is gay. I need girly time!" She whined.

"And here I thought that all gay men were feminine..."

"Well...I supposes he...WHO'S THAT!" Alice all but yelled in my ear. I think I might have gone deaf.

"Alice! My ears are ringing. I think I've lost my hearing!"

"Stop whining. I had no idea that you knew Rosalie Freida!"

I looked over to where she was pointing, which was right at Emmett's wife.

"I don't know her. I just know that she married your brother."

She let out a squeal of delight that was so high pitched, that dogs all across Forks were yelping. Alice ran off in the direction of Rose and Alice, leaving me alone on the curb. I looked over at Alice, only to find her trying to convince Rosalie to model her newest collection in the spring. So Rose was a supermodel. Go figure.

"Ready to go home and sleep."

I turned around and was Edward right behind me. "Yeah. I hate the airport and the drive up to them. Why do they have to be so far away from everything! It takes a freaking hour to get up here, and now we have to drive for another hour!"

It looked like he was trying to hold back his laughter. "I take it you're not a morning person?"

I grunted in response, and help down the horn on the car until Alice and Jasper finally joined me. All the while Edward was standing on the sidewalk crying from laughter. I almost hit him with the car. That will teach him to mess with me at five in the morning.

x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x

At 12.30 the next afternoon, I was awoken with a knock at my door. I grumbled and rolled over in bed, willing that person to go away. Three more minutes of the knocking, I got out of bed to yell at the person who dared to wake me up. When I found Alice there, with a cup of coffee and a garment bag sling over her arm, I reluctantly let her in.

"Good morning sunshine!" She said, thrusting the coffee at me.

"No. Let me go back to sleep!"

"Nope. Remember, we have a lunch to get to."

"Right. Who's coming? And what's in the bag?"

"In the bag, is an Alice original outfit. And as for lunch, it's me, you, Jasper, Emmett, Edward and Rosalie."

When she saw that I was about to argue with her that I wanted to be as far away from Rose as possible, she begged and pleaded until I gave in. She dragged me back to my bedroom, where she did my hair and makeup and helped me style the outfit that she had planned. I thought that it was too much for lunch with friends, but Alice was always right. Twenty minutes later, we were leaving my house. Great! A lunch with Rose bitching about the fat content of the salad dressing or some crap like that. I couldn't wait.


	4. Chapter 4

"Is there something on this menu that has not fat, carbs and low salt?" Rosalie asked the waiter, who looked like he was about to pee his pants at the fact that he was this close to a supermodel. Go figure.

"Um, I can go check with the cook?"

"Could you? Thanks." She said, batting her eyelashes at him.

This meal was really awkward. I was pretty sure that Rose and Emmett were touching each other under the table, Jasper and Alice were in a deep conversation and Edward was casually running his arm up and down my back. If it weren't for him, I would have bolted by now.

"Having fun yet?" He asked, leaning over to whisper in my ear.

"Are you?"

"No. Do you want to leave?"

"Can we?"

"Sure." He then turned to the rest of the people on our table and told them that he needed to get home as soon as possible and so did I. Nobody batted an eyelid (but I think I saw Emmett shiver. Really didn't want to know what that was about) as soon as Edward and I got up and left.

"It's a good thing we left when we did. I was pretty sure that Rose and Emmett were doing funny stuff under the table."

He laughed. "I guess you saw that too huh?"

"Well, it was pretty hard to miss. I saw my water glass shaking and I was pretty sure that there weren't any earthquakes happening in Fork anytime soon.

"I saw that. Now I really wish I hadn't."

"I know. I am now scarred for life." I shuddered.

"I know how to get rid of that horrifying image."

I looked up at him. "And how would we do that?"

"Wanna go swimming?" He asked, waggling his eyebrows.

"In Forks? Are you crazy? We'll freeze to death!"

"No we won't I have a heated swimming pool. Wanna come over?"

"I don't have a bathing suit."

"Who said anything about bathing suits?"

"Me. I'm not going skinny dipping Edward." I said, smacking him on his shoulder.

"Fine. I'll take you home so you can get it. Happy?"

"Yes. Let's just hope that Charlie isn't home. He'd be really upset about the fact that his little girl is hanging out, half naked, with a man."

"He still doesn't know that his little girl is all grown up huh?"

"He still thinks of me as his little girl."

"Really." He walks towards me and kisses me.

"Yup."

"What do you say we go get that bathing suit now?"

"Are we getting impatient Edward?"

"You have no idea Bella."

"Well the let's get going." I took his hand and led him to his car. Swimming with Edward? Yes please!

x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x

Just as I was about to run down the stairs and back into Edward's car, Charlie stops me in the hallway.

"Hey there Bells."

"Hi."

"What you got there?" He asked, pointing to my bad that now held my most revealing bathing suit and towels. Why did he have to pick now to be observant?

"Oh, Alice invited me over to her house to go swimming."

"Ah. Alice. Will there be any boys there?"

"Dad! Please! This is embarrassing. I'm old enough to go swimming even if it is with boys. Which I am not denying or admitting." I rolled my eyes. I really was still sixteen in his eyes.

"So swimming with Alice?"

"Yup."

"So why is Edward waiting for you in his car?"

I looked out the window and saw that he was waiting for me, which blew my whole 'swimming with Alice' lie. Damn. I still couldn't lie to save my life.

"Well, there might be boys there."

"Thought so. Go. Have fun. You haven't had fun in a while."

"Thanks dad." I walked up to him and hugged him.

"Oh, one more thing. The boys called when you were out to lunch. Don't forget to call them back."

"I will. Bye!"

x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x

I was sitting in the Jacuzzi, sipping a drink waiting for Edward to come down. And to be completely honest, I was feeling nervous. I haven't been in a bathing suit since I was 21 and going to Hawaii for a holiday with Alice. And after twins, it was hell to try to get my pre-baby body back. I just hope that I didn't look as bad as I thought.

I was bought out of my internal musing by the sound of the glass door opening and Edward coming out. And boy did he look good in a pair of swimming trunks.

"Hey there."

"Hi."

"You okay? You look tense."

Only then did I realise that I was practically huddled in the corner of the Jacuzzi.

"Yeah."

He joined me in and that's when things got awkward as we both that when we both realised that not only were we alone, but also practically naked.

"Come here." He said, opening his arms out for me.

"No. I'm fine here. Thanks though."

"If you won't come here, I'll have to come over there. Your choice."

"Okay. Fine." I walked over and sat myself between his legs, and he proceeded to give me a massage. And it felt really good.

"Feeling more relaxed?"

All I did was moan in response. He had really talented hands on him.

"If you keep that up, I can't be held responsible for what happens next."

I did it again just to test if he really meant it. All he did was groan.

"Bella, I'm being serious."

I stood up, turned around and straddled him.

"So am I. If you continue to massage me, I would have done this ages ago." Before he had a chance to say anything, we were making out in the Jacuzzi like two teenagers.

Just as things were getting interesting (read: my bikini top was now floating somewhere in the jacuzzi), that was the same time that the rest of the group decided to come back to Edward's house.

"Edward! Where do you keep the beer?" Emmett yelled from inside of the kitchen.

"Edward, where did you put my top? I can't find it anywhere." I was looking everywhere and praying that nobody came out to the backyard.

"I'll be there in a second!" Edward yelled to Emmett while helping my try to locate my top. "It's a shame that they're here huh? If you want, I can get rid of them and we can continue?"

"Edward, maybe it is a good idea that they came. Don't get me wrong, that was, um, fun, but maybe we could, you know, slow things down. The only relationship I've ever had was with Jake, and look how well that turned out."

He nodded. "Go it. What do you say to dinner next week?"

"I'd love that."

"What the hell is a bikini to doing here?" Emmett called out from the deck. "OH MY GOD! YOU TWO?"

It was only then that I realised that I still didn't have my bikini and that Emmett was now staring at us gawk-eyed.

"Emmett, can you please get back in the house and make sure that nobody comes back out here?"

He was still staring. "EMMETT!"

"Got it. Leaving now."

"And can you pass me my top?" I asked. He picked it up from the floor and walked towards me, but continued to look the other way. I rolled my eyes, but took it off him. "Thanks." He nodded and walked back towards the house.

"So I guess they know."

"Well, we weren't exactly being stealthy about it. I mean, Alice realised pretty quickly."

"Yeah. Alice is pretty perceptive like that."

I tugged on my top and got out. "Well, I guess I better be going then."

"I don't think that's going to happen. They're all going to see you and realise what's going on."

"Well then, let's all hang out and eat pizza."

"You sure? I don't want things to be weird."

"Nope. Let's do it."

x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x

As soon as we walked into the house, everyone gave us knowing looks. So now I guess they all knew that we were together. Or not together, but hanging out as more that friends.

"It's about time you got together! You guys are perfect for one another!" Alice walked over to me and told me how happy she was for me, and how when we got married (she just knew that it was meant to be) she would be there along the way, helping me plan everything. Trust Alice to think years ahead.

I got a high five from Emmett and a smile from Jasper as well as an 'it's about time'. And from Rosalie. A glare. I had no idea what her problem was. She had Emmett, but whatever.

"So? Who's hungry?" Edward walked in with the pizzas, set them on the table and came around to kiss me. I still had to get used to this.

x-x-x-x-x-x-x

After everyone left, and everything was washed and thrown away, Edward drove me home. I told him that I could easily take a cab, but he told me that he would be more than happy to take me home.

"Thanks Edward."

"No problem. Hey, don't forget about our date."

"How could I? I'll see you later."

"Okay. Bye gorgeous." He leaned over and kissed me.

"Bye."

I walked through the door, in a haze, which was broken when my dad walked in.

"You okay there Bells?"

"Huh? Yeah. Fine. I'm going to bed. Bye."

"Bye."

He probably thought that I was crazy, but Edward Cullen was my (sort of) boyfriend! Life was good.


	5. Chapter 5

"Hey boys, how are you?"

"GOOD! WE WENT TO THE PARK TODAY!" I loved how the boys always yelled thing when they were excited. No matter how may time I told them to use their 'inside voice' when they were on the phone, they still did it their way.

"That sounds nice. What..."

"Mummy, when are you coming home?"

"Soon baby, I promise."

"We miss you."

"I miss you too. Can you put dad on?"

"Okay." They held the phone away from them to yell out to Jake that I wanted to talk to him. "He's here. Bye mum, we love you!"

"Hello?" He answered sleepily.

"Were you sleeping?"

"I was taking a nap. The boys are fine."

I took deep breaths to calm down. Yelling at him wasn't going to solve anything. "Just don't do it again, okay?"

"Fine. What did you want?"

"Just letting you know that I'll be home in about three weeks."

"Great. Hey listen, I have to go. Jane just got here."

"Jane? Who's?.." Nice. He hung up on me. If he had a girlfriend over there I was going to kill him. He had a horrible attention span and would most likely ignore the boys all night. Why did I think that he was 'the one'?

To take my mind off the situation, I went downstairs to the kitchen to make myself something to eat. Dad was already at work and the house was quiet, so I thought that I would use this opportunity to watch some trashy television on dad's prized possession, his brand new flat screen t.v.

Just as I was adding the final touches to my sandwich, there was a knock at the door. I opened it and found Edward standing there.

"Hey. Come in." He walked in, shut the door and kissed me. Hard.

"Hello to you too." I laughed, while he continued to kiss whatever part of me he could.

"I missed you. And thinking about our whole Jacuzzi escapade the other day wasn't helping me. So I needed to see you."

"Well I'm glad you did. Do you want a sandwich?"

"Nope." He said, his mouth still attached to my neck.

"So what do you want then?"

He looked up at me, and my god, he was gorgeous.

"You."

I laughed. "My god! Have you used that line on many women? And if you have, did it work?"

"Way to ruin the mood!"

"I'm sorry. But it was cheesy." I said, trying to hold back laughter and failing miserably as Edward was shooting me very dirty looks.

"Well, now you're not going to get the gift I bought to today."

"Gift? What gift?" I walked over to him and began to pat him down in an attempt to find it. But I don't think that it helped with Edward's current...situation.

"I know what you're trying to do, and if you know what's good for you, you'll stop."

"What?" I asked innocently. "I was just trying to find the gift."

"No you weren't."

I walked over to him until we were standing chest to chest. "Then what was doing?"

"Starting something that you don't want to finish..."

"I'M BACK!" I sighed as Charlie walked through the door and interrupted our little sexy time. He must have realised that as he offered to go over to his friend's house to watch the game.

"Don't worry about it. Stay here, we'll go out."

"Are you sure? Hey Edward, do you wanna watch the game?"

Just as I was about to protest, Edward agreed and that is how I spent my whole day, Drinking beers and eating Chinese food out of the cartons with my two boys.

x-x-x-x-x-x-x

"So, were you planning of getting sexy lingerie for Edward tonight?" Alice asked, waggling her eyebrows suggestively.

"No. But I could use some new clothes."

"Don't I know it." Rose mumbled behind me. Bitch. What was she even doing here? The original plan was for me and Alice to go shopping, but as soon as Rose heard about it, she wanted in too. That was until we showed up at her house. She said hi to Alice, insulted my dress ("I think my grandmother had a dress like that in the 80's) and criticised what I was eating. ("Chinese Bella? Really?").

I turned to Rose. "You know, I don't think all that bronzer is working for you. I think everyone's adapted a 'less is more' approach to self tanning this season. Why don't we go over to the cosmetics department and see if we can't find you something nice there? Okay sweetie?" I threw her a patronising smile.

"I know that they may have taken that approach, but it seems to me that you could stand to use a little more. You know, just to enhance your appearance."

OH HELLS NO! She was going down!

Just as I was about to grab her hair (yes, I was such a girl) Alice pulled me back, claiming that she needed my opinion on something and told Rose to go ahead and we'd meet up with her later.

"Alice, can I just go home? She must be going through that early stages of menopause, and I can't put up with her anymore."

"You could stand to be a little nicer. She made the effort to come to hang out with you."

"No Alice, she made the effort to hang out with you. When she saw me in the car, the only thing stopping her from going back in was the amount of money that Emmett gave her for this shopping trip. She hates me and I really don't want to be subjected to this. I love you, and I'll call you later." I kissed her on the cheek and told her to have fun and was on my way.

But just as I was about to walk through the door, a little window display caught my attention. It was a shop that sold beautiful lingerie. Well, at least it looked amore classy than what they had at all those other sleazy shops. I walked in (just to look around, I told myself) but once I was approached by the saleslady (who looked like Rose. She and her clones are taking over the word I tell you! But was actually nice) I managed to spend $280. And when I walked out of there, I was freaking out that I was going o bump into someone I know and that they would demand to know what I bought. But I did manage to flag down a cab, and arrive home, not being approached by people asking what I bought.

x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x

It was date night, and I was still standing in front of my closet in my newly acquired lingerie trying to find out what to wear. I went through many options but nothing seemed to work. And now Edward was here judging from the incessant ringing of the doorbell. But to my surprise (and horror) it was actually Rose standing at my door.

"Are you lost or something?"

"I wish. Alice, god knows why, asked me to drop this off for her."

I took the bag from her.

"Well thanks." She nodded and walked away. Fine by me.

I was just about to turn back when there was more banging on the door.

"What do you want k...Edward!"

"Please put something on! What are you doing answering the door like that?"

I looked down and realised that in my rush to answer the door the first time, I grabbed the robe that never seems to want to stay closed and that my underwear were out for the whole world to see.

"This is a faulty robe. But do you like what's underneath it?"

"I really do." He said as he managed to push the robe off my shoulders until it was pooled around my feet.

"I thought that the plan for tonight was going to get dinner."

"We can skip all that and just stay in..."

I pulled away. "No way mister. Food was promised and I'm hungry, so we're going. Let me get dressed and then we'll leave."

Once alone in my bedroom, I decided to change my underwear as he had already seen this set. I opted for a lacy black teddy hoping that it wasn't too slutty and dressed in the simple red dress that Alice gave me. I paired it with my red suede shoes and we were on our way.

x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x

As our desert (or what was left of it) was taken away, we kept up the conversation. It was really easy to talk to him, and I was having a great time getting to know him better.

"You really do look gorgeous tonight."

"Thanks."

"But," He leaned in closer "I can't help but notice that there's no blue under that dress. And that can only mean one thing."

"Which is..."

"You changed. And I for one cannot wait to see what you changed into. Can I get a hint?"

"It's black and lacy. Oh, and it comes off very easily." I said while sipping my wine. It was so much fun to tease him like this.

"Well in that case, let's get you home."


End file.
